Railway-track structure.



PATENTED MAY 26, 1903.

G. H. PARMELEB. RAILWAY TRACK STRUCTURE,

APPLIOATIOH nLnnnov. 1a. 1902.

I0 IODEL.

IHYEIITOI) WI TNE SSE S UNITED STATES Patented May 26, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE H. PARMELEE, OF J OHNSTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE LORAINSTEEL COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

RAILWAY-TRACK STRUCTU RE.

SPECIFICATION forming part Of Letters Patent No. 729,090, dated May 26,1903. Application filed November 13, 1902. erial No. 131,083. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE H. PARMELEE, of Johnstown, in the county ofOambria and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Railway-Track Structures, of which the following is afull, clear, and exact description, reference being bad to theaccompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

This invention has relation to means of novel character for securinginplace and removing therefrom the renewable portions or plates ofrailway-track structures. These renewable portions or plates arerequired to be 1.5 very securely fastened to the body portions of thestructures, being used in frogs, curvecrosses, girder-crosses, mates,and switchpieces, where they are subjected not only to the hammering andpounding action of the modern heavy cars, but also to the action of moreor less heavy miscellaneous street trafe fic. It is also extremelydesirable that they shall be secured in such a manner that they can bereadily removed and replaced when 2 5 necessary, by reason of wear ordefects, without taking up the entire structure and without thenecessity of disturbingthe adjacent pavement. This latter requirementmakes the problem a somewhat difficult one, since it precludes the useof any fastening which must be applied from the sides or bottom of thestructures and makes it necessary to provide fastening means which canbe applied and removed from the surface of the struc- 5 ture.

My present invention is designed to provide simple, secure, andthoroughly practical means for fulfilling the above-stated requirements.

In another application of even date herewith, Serial No. 131,082, I havedescribed and claimed, broadly, a fastening for the renewable portionsor plates of railway-track structures, consisting of a solid body ofsome retaining material, such as spelter, seated in opposite pockets orcavities formed in the body portion of the structure and in therenewable portion orplate, with an integral connecting portion arrangedto be reached and 50 cut, fractured, or sheared from the surface of thestructure, thereby to release the plate; The present invention employs asimilar fastoning; but in connection therewith I provide a fracturing orshearing device incorporated in the structure and engaging the integralconnecting-portion of the retaining material. This shearing orfracturing device or key,

as it is commonly termed, is so arranged that its upper end is readilyaccessible from the surface of the structure, and by placing a suitabledrift or punch in contact therewith and driving it with a sledge thesaid connecting portion can be readily fractured or sheared and theplate be thereby released.

The present invention also provides means for taking up shrinkage of theretaining material employed, and thereby tending to prevent looseness inthe fastening which might otherwise result.

The invention also consists in the novel'con- 7o structionandcombination of parts, all sub stantially as hereinafter described,andpointed out in the appended claims, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a plan view of a frog orcurvecross embodying my invention; Fig. 2, a section on the line 2 2 ofFig; 1; Fig. 3, a plan view of the structure of Fig. 1 with the plateremoved; Fig. 4, a transverse vertical section of a track structure,showing amoditication; Fig. 5, a section on the line 5 5 of Figs.

2 and 4.; Fig. 6, a side view of the plate of Figs. 1 and 2 removed, andFigs. 7 and 8 de tail views of different forms of fracturing members orkeys.

In the figures, A designates the body portion of the structure, and Athe diverging rail members'thereof. The latter maybe cast integrallywith said body portion or they may go be cast into the same,myrinven'tiou being equally applicable to both types of construction. v

B designates the renewable portion or plate, which is track-su rfaced inalinement with the abutting portions of the structure and forms thetrack intersection. In the construction shown in Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 6this plate is formed with a central depending portion or extension 1),preferably of wedge form, and

'the body portion A is provided with a pocket or cavity a to seat saidextension. This pocket or cavity, which is surrounded by a horizontalledge a, is made enough smaller than the extension b to leave asurrounding space for the retaining material, as shown. Cored in thesides of this extension I) are pockets or cavities c, and in the lateralwalls of the pocket a are similar cavities c, which are directlyopposite the cavities c. Cored through the marginal portion of the plateB directly over each of the cavities c is a slot d, and cored throughthe bottom of the body portion A in line with each of the slots (1 is anopening (1. D is a shearing member or key. After this plate has beenseated in the structure one of these keys is dropped loosely into eachof the slots 61 in such position that the opening D thereof is betweenthe mouths of the pockets or cavities c c. The openings d are plugged upwith wood or clay to prevent the retaining material from flowing outtherethrough while it is being poured, and the keys D can be held inproper position by restingtheirlowerendsupontheseplugs. Either the plateor the body portion A may be cored out, as shown at (1 Fig. 3, toreceive the thickness of the key. The keys having been placed,theretaining material in aliquid state is poured into the slots (1 aroundthe keys and flows underneath and around the extension b, fills thepockets 0 c, and also underneath the marginal portion of the plate, asshown, being prevented from running out at the sides by means ofsuitable clamps or dams. It also fills the slots 01 around the keys."While this material is being poured the plate is preferably clampedfirmly to its seat. When the retaining material cools, it forms acomplete bed for the plate and also forms solid bodies engaging thepockets 0 0, these bodies in each pair of pockets being connected by anintegral portion which extends through the opening D in the key, asshown in Fig. 5. The plate is thus securely held to its place. Inasmuchas the retaining metal will shrink somewhat in cooling, I prefer to makethe pockets 0 c of dovetailed form, largest at their inner ends, inorder to take up such shrinkage. The pockets may, however, be made ofany suitable shape.

By providing the plate with the extension I) I am able to do away withthe side walls a (shown in Fig. 4,) as such extension bedded, as it is,with retaining material provides a deep bearing for the plate againstlateral blows and thrusts. Doing awaywith these side portions results inan economy of metal and also reduces the weight of the structure and theamount of metal surface in the street. For some classes of work,however, it may be desired to retain these side walls,as shown in Fig.4. In such cases the plates are seated and the pockets 0 0 arranged asshown in Fig. 4.

To remove the plate,the retaining material is chipped away from theupper end of the key and a drift is applied thereto and driven with asledge until the connecting portion of the retaining material whichextends through the key is fractured or sheared and it and the key aredriven far enough into or through the opening d to release its holdingaction.

The ,key is preferably made wider toward its lower end, as shown, inorder that it may more readily clear itself in driving. When all thefastenings have been released in this manner, the plate can be readilylifted out. The cross-sectional area which can be fractured or shearedin this manner necessarily depends upon the character of the retainingmaterial which is employed. With ordinary commercial spelter, which is agood material for the purpose, a cross section one inch square orsomewhat larger may be readily fractured or sheared. After the plate hasbeen removed the structure is prepared to receive a new plate bycleaning out the retaining material in the pocket at and in the pocket0'. The latter may be done by chipping, drilling, or melting.

While I have shown my invention in connection with a frog orcurve-cross, it will be obvious that it may be used in various othertrack structuressuch as crossings, mates, switch-pieces, &c.-in whichrenewable wear portions or plates are provided. For an ordinary frog orcurve-cross two or three of the fastening devices at each side of theplate will be sufficient. For longer plates, such as are used in mates,the number of fastenings may be increased in proportion to the length ofthe plate. It is also obvious that my invention is susceptible ofvarious modifications in the shape andarrangement of the plate, thepockets, and of the shearing or fracturing members or keys. Hence I donot wish to be limited to the particular embodiments which I have hereinshown and described.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a railway-track structure, the combination with a renewableportion or plate, and a shearable or fracturable fastening therefor, ofa shearing or fracturing member or key incorporated in the structure andengaging the said fastening.

2. In a railway-track structure, the combination with the body portionof the structure, a renewable wear portion or plate and the bodies ofretaining material seated partly in the plate and partly in the castingand having integral connecting portions, of shearing members or keysincorporated in the structure and engaging said connecting portions,said members or keys being accessible from the surface of the structurefor driving.

3. In a railway-track structure, the combination with a body portion ofthe structure, a renewable portion or plate, and retaining materialengaging pockets in said plate and body portion, of the shearing orfracturing members or keys embedded in said retaining material andarranged to be driven to shear or fracture the same.

4. In a railway-track structure, the combination with the body portion,and a renewable portion or plate, said body portion and plate havingoppositely-situated pockets or cavities therein, of a shearing member orkey having an opening therethrough which registers with said pockets orcavities, and retaining material filling said pockets or cavities andextending through said opening.

5. In a railway-track structure, the combination with the body portionhaving a plate seat and cavity and a plate having an extension seatingin said cavity, said extension and the walls of said cavity havingoppositelysituated pockets therein and the plate having slotstherethrough above said pockets, of shearing or fracturing members orkeys extending through said slots and having openings therethroughopposite the said pockets and retaining material bedding the said plateand filling said pockets and opening, substantially as described.

6. In a railway-track structure, the combination of the body portion Ahaving the cavity a, and the pockets 0, the plate B, having the slots(1, the extension 6 and the pockets 0 formed in said extension, theshearing members or keys D having openings therethrough and theretaining metal bedding said plate and its extension and filling thesaid pockets and extending through the said openings, substantially asdescribed.

7. In a railway-track structure, having a removable wear portion,retaining material forming a fastening for the said plate, and shearingor fracturing members embedded in said retaining material.

8. In a railway-track structure, the combination with a body portion, ofa wear portion or plate seated therein, said wear portion or plate andthe casting having opposite pockets or cavities formed therein, saidpockets or cavities being largest at their inner ends.

9. In a railway-track structure, the combination with the body portion,the plate, and the retaining material forming a fastening for saidplate, of the tapered fracturing or shearing members or keys embedded insaid retaining material.

10. In a railway-track structure, the combination of the body portion,having the plateseat formed with dovetailed pockets or cavities, theplate having similar pockets or cavities, the retaining material fillingthe same,

. and the tapered shearing or fracturing members engaging the retainingmaterial between the said pockets or cavities and accessible for drivingfrom the surface of the structure.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature in presence of twowitnesses. I GEORGE H. PARMELEE.

Witnesses:

LORETTO OOoNNELL, H. W. SMITH.

